Council committee approves plans for Pike Place Market and Aquarium development

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: 2/19/2013

Councilmember Jean Godden

Council committee approves plans for Pike Place Market and Aquarium development

This afternoon the Seattle City Council’s Central Waterfront, Seawall and Alaskan Way Viaduct Replacement Program Special Committee (Waterfront Committee) unanimously approved Council Bill 117699, an agreement to develop the PC-1 North site, the last underdeveloped site in the Pike Place Market Historical District. The agreement, authorizing the execution of an Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) between the City and the Pike Place Market Preservation and Development Authority (PPMPDA), makes up to $7 million available – over the next two years – to the PPMPDA for engineering, design, and consultant services.

The project, designed by Miller Hull Partnership, will develop the neglected 0.75 acre site, long used as a surface parking lot, with a low-rise multipurpose structure. The new development will provide parking for both the Market and the Waterfront, added retail space, and several stories of low-income and artist housing. The new PC-1 North site will also anchor a sloping walkway that will connect the Market to the Waterfront, providing easy access for pedestrians between the two.

“What a thrilling opportunity for the market! And the opportunity is just as great for Seattle’s emerging waterfront which will benefit from easy access to Seattle’s prime tourist attraction,” said Councilmember Jean Godden, Chair of the Waterfront Committee. “The walkway will offer matchless views of Elliott Bay all along the way and provide room for public art and green outlooks.”

The expansion also means that there will be more room at the Market for booths and sellers and more room for the market’s fresh produce and organic specialties, supplemented by increased parking and access.

The Waterfront Committee also unanimously passed Council Bill 117698, authorizing the execution of an MOU between the City and the Seattle Aquarium Society (SAS) for the renovation and expansion of the Aquarium. Under the terms of this agreement, the City will reimburse SAS for up to $1 million of its expenditures for aquarium expansion engineering, design, and consultant services.

Expansion plans call for a new structure – located under the walkway that connects with the Market – that will house an education center and theatre, redevelopment of 30,000 square feet of Pier 59, and the creation of a new 35,000 square-foot South Wing that will contain new exhibits.